Judge grants Werdesheim brothers bench trial

Defense: Trayvon Martin case makes fair trial difficult

The attorneys for Eli and Avi Werdesheim, two brothers accused of beating a black teenager while on a neighborhood watch, have been granted their request for a bench trial instead of a jury trial, said 11 News reporter Lowell Melser.

The attorneys said comparisons to the Trayvon Martin case had prompted their delay of trial and change of venue requests.

The Werdesheim brothers said they acted in self-defense during their run-in with a 15-year-old boy in November 2010. The incident happened as the boy was walking along Fallstaff Road in an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood. According to court charging documents, a car followed the boy and people got out of the car, threw the boy to the ground and told him he didn't belong there.

The judge also dealt with several other motions on Tuesday, said Melser, including whether to admit 911 tapes, allow the victim to testify about a photo lineup, or let the state introduce an article published in the Jewish Times in which the reporter interviewed both brothers, linking them to the crime scene.

The judge did allow the article to be admitted into evidence, said Melser.

Outside the Mitchell Courthouse, supporters of the then-15-year-old victim expressed their opinion of the case.

"We represent every young person in this city who has experienced these kinds of atrocities ???in this city every single day," said one supporter.

Both Werdesheim brothers have been charged with false imprisonment, assault and possession of a deadly weapon.

The documents said the victim was hit in the head with a radio, suffering a laceration to his head and a broken wrist.